Warren Ellis' Apparat Volume 1 [Paperback]

Warren Ellis (Author), Juan Jose Ryp (Author), Jacen Burrows (Author), Others (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 26, 2005

"Warren Ellis' Apparat Volume 1".

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ellis's Apparat comics were originally published as four first issues of otherwise hypothetical series, drawn by four different artists—an experiment in imagining what comics would be like if they'd evolved from the pulp magazines of the '30s instead of superheroes. The conceit extends to their visual style: Carla Speed McNeil's rough, chiseled art for the compassionate hardboiled detective story "Frank Ironwine," for instance, draws more on pulp traditions than spandex conventions. Ellis's dark SF world of a future dragged down by humanity's own frailties has power, but the one-shot nature of the series sometimes works against it. "Angel Stomp Future" (drawn in magnificently gross, squirming detail by Juan Jose Ryp) is supposed to be science fiction, but Ellis gets so caught up in a lecture about his pet themes that he neglects to give it a plot, and the aviator comic "Quit City" (with clear-lined, photo-inspired art by Laurenn McCubbin) devotes most of its space to setting up characters we'll never see again. The most intriguing story here is "Simon Spector," about a brutal, Shadow/Doc Savage–inspired hero whose "supersane" high-speed thought is fueled by potent drugs. Curiously, both Ellis's script and Jacen Burrows's art suggest superhero comics' style more than any other story here. (Nov.)Correction: In the Oct. 24 Q&A with Dennis Cooper, the publisher of his novel God Jr. was misstated. It is Grove/Atlantic. Carroll & Graf will publish Cooper's The Sluts next month.
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Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Avatar Press (November 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592910327
• ISBN-13: 978-1592910328
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,689,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A World Without Super Heroes, February 14, 2006

By 

Joshua Koppel (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Warren Ellis' Apparat Volume 1 (Paperback)

Warren Ellis tried to figure out how adventure comics would have developed without sixty-odd years of super hero comics. The result is a series of one-shots that follow some of the classic themes of the old action comics. This volume collects the first four.

Science Fiction is up first with a very bizarre tale and amazing graphics (you really have to pay attention to all of the little details in the graphics).

Detective fiction takes an interesting turn with a detective who has a tendency to sleep in dumpsters. He and his new partner have a murder to solve.

The wonder of Pilot heroes follows as a flying ace retires from a team of hero pilots. This one is a little strange as well as being a pilot has little to do with the story. Also the art was unstable with characters looking young one moment and beyond middle age the next and vice versa.

The final story takes the mantle of Doc Savage, The Shadow and The Spider with a different eccentric millionaire fighting crime with the help of strange substances. I felt this was the best overall considering both story and art.

Readers will be a little disappointed to find out how long we might have to wait for any more of these stories and there is also a tendency to want to see more stories about some of these characters (I really liked the detective). Check it out.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Disturbingly beautiful, November 23, 2008

By 

Ørjan Langbakk "PoPSiCLe" (Bergen, Norway) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Warren Ellis' Apparat Volume 1 (Paperback)

This TPB is what Warren Ellis, to me, is all about. Short, to the point, scarily brutal, sometimes even morbid - still, he's a fine, fine writer, and the artists he's gotten to come along this time are genuinely some of the best.

Warren Ellis' work with Transmetropolitan has been legendary. This stand-alone TPB takes some of the style and suave from Transmetro, and transfers the absurdity and plain crazyness to different settings in different times and places.

If you like Warren Ellis' work, or if you haven't yet sampled his twisted mind's offerings, this is a great place to start!